Design and Planning

Research by Others

Administered by the TransportationResearch Board (TRB) and sponsored by the member departments (i.e., individual state departments of transportation) of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) was created in 1962 as a means to conduct research in acute problem areas that affect highway planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance nationwide.

Five major categories: Benefits and Costs, Energy Conservation, Air Quality, Water Resources, and Fire. However, we are not limited to those five categories. Additional research focuses on Urban Forest Policy and Management, Tree Stewardship, Biometrics, Infrastructure Conflicts, and Urban-Wildland Interface.

The overall goal of the Storm Water Program is to integrate appropriate storm water control activities into ongoing activities, thus making control of storm water pollution a part of Caltrans normal business practices.

Stormwater management is a complex task with a variety of regulatory drivers and constraints. It spans numerous technical disciplines including hydraulics, hydrology, geology, and water quality. For transportation projects, the extensive and linear nature of the highway network constrains the use of conventional stormwater management approaches while requiring safe access for maintenance of stormwater treatment facilities